Boston Sexual Abuse Lawyer Blog

David Ettlinger, a former Newton teacher and Brighton resident facing a slew of child pornography charges in two Massachusetts counties was released on his personal recognizance at Suffolk Superior Court April 3, according to Wicked Local Newton and WCVB. The move allows the court to transport Ettlinger to Louisiana, where he faces federal charges for participating in an online child pornography forum.

Ettlinger, 34, was scheduled to appear at Moakley Courthouse in Boston Tuesday afternoon and then to be taken to Louisiana, where he faces charged for his alleged membership in Dreamboard, an international forum that promoted sexual abuse of children.

Ettlinger was arrested at his Commonwealth Avenue home in January following an investigation, and charged with two counts of possession of child pornography. Prosecutors said they found hundreds of images of child pornography on his computer.

Ettlinger was later additionally charged with indecent assault on a person under 14 and posing a child in the nude.

Prosecutors said the victim was a family friend he was babysitting.

Ettinger was indicted in Middlesex Superior Court in February for charges of five counts of aggravated indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of 14, posing a child in a state of nudity, posing a child in sexual conduct, possession of child pornography, and secretly recording a partially nude person.

He was arraigned Feb. 8 and ordered held on $50,000 cash bail.

Wicked Local Newton reports that later that month, prosecutors discovered inappropriate photos of Ettlinger's former students at Underwood Elementary School in Newton. The photos were taken secretly but were not pornographic, and therefore not criminal.

Ettlinger was arraigned at Suffolk Superior Court on March 1 on additional charges. Prosecutors said on two unrelated occasions in 2009, he undressed and taped himself fondling two teenage girls as they slept.

He is schedulted to go on trial at Suffolk Superior Court in Dec. 2012. He will go on trial at Middlesex Superior Court in February 2013.

The rape suspect from Massachusetts who was apprehended at a New Jersey home earlier this week was once arrested for attempted murder in Massachusetts, authorities have confirmed, as reported by the Lawrenceville NJ patch.com website.

Byron Garcia, a 30-year-old North Andover, Mass., resident who recently fled Massachusetts amid accusations he had raped a young girl, was arrested Feb. 22 by U.S. Marshals at a home where relatives live in Lawrence Township, NJ. The girl allegedly raped by Garcia is just 4 years old, according to Deputy U.S. Marshal Michael Schroeder.

Garcia was arrested in 2009 for armed assault with intent to murder and illegal discharge of a firearm within 500 feet of a building, among other related charges, after police alleged he fired multiple shots at a car in Lawrence, Mass. No one was injured in that incident.

That case against Garcia was eventually dismissed, however. There had been speculation that the incident was gang-related, as gang violence had spiked during that time. And the alleged victim and witnesses in the case failed to show up to court multiple times, according to Carrie Kimball-Monahan, spokesperson for Essex County (Mass.) District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett.

Garcia remains in custody at the Mercer County Correction Center in New Jersey, awaiting extradition to Massachusetts.

Deputy U.S. Marshal Schroeder said police in North Andover, Mass., launched their investigation earlier this month into the alleged sexual assault of the 4-year-old victim and on Feb. 13 issued an arrest warrant for Garcia on charges of rape and indecent exposure involving a child under the age of 14. North Andover police feared Garcia would return to his native country of Guatamala.

Massachusetts State Police contacted the New Jersey State Police with the information that Garcia might be hiding out in Lawrence Township, and the job of going after him was passed Wednesday morning to the New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force, Schroeder said.

Created in 2002, the task force is made up of personnel from the U.S. Marshals Service, Mercer County Sheriff's Office, New Jersey State Police and about 100 other law enforcement agencies.

Task force members immediately went to the house on Eldridge Avenue in Lawrence Township where, according to Schroeder, several of Garcia's relatives - including his father and stepbrother - live. He said Garcia was found hiding in a bedroom closet.

A bounce at a Norton sports bar has been released on $5,000 bail after pleading not guilty to raping a Wheaton College student at the establishment. Paul Panaikas of Taunton is accused of raping the student at the Sportsway Café on Feb. 2.

Prosecutors said at his arraignment Wednesday that he pushed the woman into a closet and sexually assaulted her. Authorities say the woman's friends banged on the closet door.

The 38-year-old Panaikas' lawyer says his client is not guilty. The attorney says the Wheaton student "stalked'' his client, and willingly followed him into the closet. The defense lawyer also questioned why the alleged victim did not undergo tests for rape at the hospital and why it took her a week to report the case to police.

A Rochester, New York man was arraigned in Berkshire Superior Court on a sexual assault charge, as 29 year old BENJAMIN C. WILLSEA appeared before Judge Daniel Ford

WILLSEA had a not guilty plea entered on his behalf on one (1) count RAPE. Judge Ford released him on personal recognizance on the condition WILLSEA have no contact with the alleged victim.

It is alleged that WILLSEA sexually assaulted an 18 year old woman, in Stockbridge, on July 24, 2011. The investigation was conducted by members of the Stockbridge Police Department.

Boston University leading hockey scorer Corey Trivino, who was drafted by the New York Islanders in 2008, was arrested Sunday night and faces multiple charges stemming from an incident with a female student, the student newspaper BU Today reported Tuesday.

Men's hockey coach Jack Parker dismissed Trivino, a senior forward, from the team.

"He is no longer associated with the BU hockey team," Parker said, according to the newspaper.

Trivino was charged with three counts of indecent assault and battery, two counts of breaking and entering in the nighttime and one count of assault with attempt to rape for allegedly entering a woman's room and attempting to kiss and fondle her against her will.

Trivino, from Toronto, was arraigned Monday and pleaded not guilty. He either could pay $25,000 bail or surrender his Canadian passport, the newspaper reported. He was ordered to leave his BU dormitory.

Dean of students Kenneth Elmore told BU Today that Trivino can attend classes until he is suspended or expelled.

"We appreciate that the judge in this case takes the matter seriously," Elmore said, according to the newspaper. "He used his process and we will use ours as fast and as thoughtfully as we can to carefully listen to all the charges and make sure that no one is harmed."

Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Cameron Merrill told the court that witnesses claim that an intoxicated Trivino pushed his way into the woman's room and started kissing and fondling her against her will.

The woman told him to leave and he did, according to the newspaper. She then called BU police, who arrived a short time later and put Trivino under arrest.

Trivino leads Hockey East with 13 goals this season and is tied for eighth with 17 points.

Boston.com reports that a man wanted in Haverhill on a warrant accusing him of child rape has been arrested in New York City.

State police said 29-year-old Jose Alberto Gonzalez-Bonilla, also known as Jose B. Gonzalez, was traced to an address in Queens where New York City police found him hiding in a closet early Monday morning.

Haverhill police said he is accused of repeatedly raping an 11-year-old girl beginning in 2009.
State police said the Essex, Mass., district attorney's office will coordinate his return with New York authorities.

A Pittsfield man has been arraigned in Berkshire Superior Court on sexual assault charges. 20 year old WILLIAM J. DANIELS, JR. (771 Tyler Street) appeared before Judge Daniel Ford.

DANIELS had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on two (2) counts of RAPE and one (1) count of INDECENT ASSAULT AND BATTERY ON A PERSON OVER THE AGE OF 14. Judge Ford released him on personal recognizance on the condition DANIELS have no contact with the alleged victim.

The incidents are alleged to have occurred in Pittsfield between January 2, 2011 and April 1, 2011. The alleged victim is a 17 year old woman.

The investigation was conducted by members of the Pittsfield Police Department.

Sexual assault charges have been leveled against the New Jersey man accused of repeatedly raping a missing Massachusetts girl who was found at his home in November.

Jorge Luis Garzon, 45, of Jersey City was charged with aggravated sexual assault, child endangerment and child abuse according to Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio, as quoted by NJ.com.

Garzon, a divorced father of two, was arrested after Jersey City police and the New York City Police Department's Missing Persons Squad arrived at parent's his Winfield Avenue home to look for the missing 13-year-old girl, according to The Jersey Journal.

The girl had been missing from Wayland, Mass. since Nov. 4, when she apparently boarded a Peter Pan bus in Boston. She was last seen on New York Port Authority security tape getting off the bus in New York City around 11 p.m. that night.
Her family said they believed she ran away due to boredom with life in the small town of just over 12,000 residents about 20 miles west of Boston.

The missing girl met Garzon over the Internet, according to a NJ.com source close to the investigation who was not authorized to discuss the case.

The investigation, headed by Sgt. Jamie Berger and Det. Ruth Backman of the Wayland Police Department, led the duo to travel to New York City after receiving a tip that the girl may have ran away to Brooklyn since her father once lived there.

According to published reports, the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office has not provided any details about how long the girl was in New Jersey or what led police to Garzon's home.

A Superior Court judge has denied a request for lower bail by a University of Utah professor who allegedly watched child pornography on his laptop on a flight to Boston last weekend, according to the Boston Globe.

Grant D. Smith, 47, of Cottonwood Heights was arrested last Saturday at Logan International Airport after a fellow passenger on the flight from Salt Lake City allegedly spotted what he was viewing. Smith was arraigned in East Boston District Court on Monday.

Smith's attorney asked Judge Carol Ball to reduce his $75,000 cash bail under a statute that allows a defendant in district court to petition a superior court judge for bail reduction.

Ball denied Smith's petition without prejudice, meaning he can seek review at a later date.

"Based on the facts of the case, additional charges are probable and in fact quite likely," said Assistant Suffolk District Attorney David Deakin.

Deakin added Smith's bail was necessary to ensure his appearance at future court dates.

"He has no ties to the Commonwealth," he said. "His ties to Utah appear to be weakening by the day ... It appears he has as many ties to Korea and Malaysia as he does to Massachusetts."

Smith told officers he traded images of teens online. Police recovered from his computer images of children as young as 5 years old in sexual contact with men, prosecutors said.

Smith was arrested for possession of child pornography, which is punishable by up to five years in state prison. A person convicted of that offense must also register as a sex offender.

Smith is scheduled to return to court on Dec. 27.

A Stoughton woman offered an undercover state trooper 12 women who would perform sex services during a "private party" at her Brockton spa for $1,720, the Enterprise News reported.
Terry Mussari, 45, pleaded not guilty to charges of deriving support from prostitution during a brief arraignment in Brockton District Court. She was released on $2,000 cash bail, and is scheduled back in court on Jan. 9.
State police and the FBI raided three spas owned by Mussari, including Aria Day Spa in Brockton, Sparkle Day Spa in Canton and Spa Bellissimo in Norwood, following an investigation into prostitution and illicit drug dealing.
Investigators said the spas were offering sex between masseuses and their clients in exchange for cash that was characterized as "tips." Authorities also said employees of the spa were selling narcotics to customers as well as to each other.
Prosecutor Dean Mazzone said Mussari ran "basically a prostitution ring."
Mussari's lawyer, William Sims, said during her arraignment that she owned a home in Stoughton, was married with a daughter and had no prior convictions.
Mussari was the owner of an Easton spa that was also investigated for prostitution in 2003.
On Monday, the sign on the door of Aria Day Spa said it opened at 10 a.m., but the lights were off and the door was locked,
Authorities also arrested Tiffany Burgess, 31, of Raynham on multiple outstanding arrest warrants. She was released on $200 cash bail, but has not been charged in connection with the raid.

NEW BEDFORD Police have arrested a registered Level 3 sex offender after reportedly stumbling upon an attempted rape.

William H. Fuller, 51, who is homeless, was charged with kidnapping, assault to murder and assault to rape. He will appear for a dangerousness hearing in New Bedford District Court.

Fuller, who has a 1998 conviction for indecent assault and battery on a person over 14, is classified as a Level 3 sex offender, considered the most dangerous and likely to reoffend, according to the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry.

A court psychologist said during Fuller's arraignment in District Court that he has a longstanding history of substance abuse and has been committed twice this year to Bridgewater State Hospital.

Sgt. Matt Rayner, head of the New Bedford Police Department's juvenile and sexual assault unit, said patrol officers responded to an unrelated disturbance around 3:45 a.m. Saturday in the West End when they heard the alleged victim's voice.

Rayner declined to release additional details, citing the state's rape shield laws, but said the responding officers aided the victim at the scene and "prevented things from getting worse."

A Gardner man who spent 14 years as a city police officer has resigned from the force.

Larry Landry was placed on paid leave when he was arrested last month on charges of statutory rape of a child, indecent assault and battery on a child under age 14 and assault to rape a child. He sent his resignation letter to the mayor last week.

Prosecutors say the 35-year-old Landry assaulted the boy starting in kindergarten until the sixth-grade. The alleged incidents took place in Winchendon.

Landry has pleaded not guilty and his lawyer said he has served honorably.

Landry and another man were separately charged with indecent assault and battery on a 20-year-old woman.

A Gardner city police officer was arraigned yesterday on charges that he molested a juvenile, as reported by the Worcester Telegram.

Larry J. Landry, 35, was charged with statutory rape of a child, indecent assault and battery on a child under age 14, and assault to rape a child.

He is being held on $50,000 cash or $500,000 with surety bail in Worcester County Jail.

No formal plea was entered for Landry, and he is due back in court on Oct. 5 for a pretrial hearing.

Assistant District Attorney Brian D'Andrea told the court that Landry was arrested Monday after the juvenile told Gardner police he had been molested by Landry.

The molestation allegedly took place in Winchendon from the time the boy was in kindergarten until he was in the sixth grade.

After learning of the allegations, Landry turned himself in to Gardner police.

He was arrested and placed on paid leave by Chief Neil Erickson.

In arguing for the high bail, D'Andrea said that because of the nature of the charges, Landry is a severe flight risk.

But in seeking lower bail, Martin B. Kallio Jr., Landry's lawyer, said his client is 35, is separated from his wife, and has children ages 16, 11, and 6.

"He has been a police officer for 14 years - all of that honorable - and was acting sergeant for several months,'' he said.

After the hearing, Kallio said his client denies all charges, the Telegram reported.

"These allegations are outrageous,'' he said. "He denies them vociferously.''

A Pawtucket man has been arrested after a Massachusetts teen told her guidance counselor that he arranged for another man to repeatedly rape her when she was 11.

The Providence Journal reports that John Rainey, a relative of the alleged victim, was arrested and charged with three counts of conspiracy to commit child molestation.

The alleged assailant, Warren Prescott of North Attleboro, Mass., was ordered held without bail on charges including three counts of first-degree child molestation.

Pawtucket police say the alleged victim, now 17, told her counselor in May, and police obtained an arrest warrant for Rainey in August.

Police say that Rainey would tell the girl she had to come with him and bring her to Prescott.

Two Massachusetts men have been arrested and charged in connection with a global online child pornography ring that encouraged users to upload graphic sexual assaults of victims aged 12 and under, officials told the Boston Globe.

Rush Frank Blankenship of Westfield is scheduled to plead guilty to federal child pornography charges in September in Louisiana, and David Michael Whitten of Lynn pleaded guilty to a related charge in that state in June, court records show.

According to the Department of Justice, the men are two of the 72 defendants charged in the United States and abroad who were members of the website Dreamboard, which authorities began investigating in 2009.

Members uploaded images of young children being abused to gain access to the site, authorities said, and they had to continue posting new content to maintain membership. Users were grouped into tiers based in part on how often they provided content and whether they personally produced the images, according to the Justice Department, and posting violent assaults of children was encouraged.

Users in higher tiers could access more content, authorities said.

Whitten will be sentenced in October and faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine, records show. He posted three visual files to Dreamboard over two days in November 2009, including one involving an 8-year-old girl.

Details of Blankenship's indictment and plea agreement were not available yesterday.

Of the 72 defendants, 13 have pleaded guilty and 20 remain at large, according to the Department of Justice.

Suspects have been arrested in 13 other countries including Canada, Kenya, Serbia, and Switzerland, authorities said, and more than 500 users have been targeted.

The Justice Department said the investigation, dubbed Operation Delego, has resulted in the largest prosecution in the United States of users accessing an online bulletin board created for the sole purpose of promoting child sexual abuse.